INDIE ROCK MV #4: Kool Thing - Sonic Youth

POSSIBLE POINTS OF INFLUENCE

• The mixture of black + white and colour, and also colour correction
• The close-up of just lips with bit of chin without upper face

ACT: Sonic Youth
TRACK: Kool Thing
ALBUM: Goo
YEAR: 1990
GENRE: Alternative rock, noise rock, punk rock 
DIRECTOR: Tamra Davis 
LABEL: Geffen, DGC (owned by UMG)
SINGLE?: Yes

BACKGROUND/CONTEXT

• First single + music video with a major label 
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PERFORMANCE, NARRATIVE OR CONCEPT?

Performance and concept video, but no clear linear narrative. Kim Gordon being the lead vocalist on this track, she takes up the 

EXTRA SOUND:

No diegetic sounds, silences or other tracks by the artist.

TITLES:
We get half of the song as a diegetic title.

...








NARRATIVE ENIGMA:

Withholding information from the audience. Do we get the full body of the singer in the opening shot. No, and often not the face immediately either.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LYRICS AND VISUALS:

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SOUND AND VISUALS:
Influence on Editing, Mise-en-scene and sometimes even cinematography.

GENRE SIGNIFIERS:
Genres include rock (heavy metal, punk, indie) pop, jazz. 

INTERTEXTUAL REFERENCES:
To literature, film, TV, other music videos?

OTHER NARRATIVE THEORY:
Todorov, Propp, Levi-Strauss? 
These don't apply.

BRANDING:
As mentioned before the album title is mentioned painted on the neck.

REPRESENTATION:
Male and/or Female Gaze?

AUDIENCE REPRESENTED/TARGETED:
Is the age, gender, class of the audience reflected in the narrative characters of the video?